Editing Kailua-Kona, Hawaii (section)

== Attractions and events ==
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Kailua-Kona is the host of the annual [[Ironman World Championship]] triathlon,<ref>{{Cite web| url=http://www.ironman.com/triathlon/events/americas/ironman/world-championship.aspx#/axzz4DmsG9uL3| title=Ironman World championships| website=Ironman.com| language=en-US| access-date=2016-05-22| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160518003340/http://www.ironman.com/triathlon/events/americas/ironman/world-championship.aspx#/axzz4DmsG9uL3| archive-date=2016-05-18| url-status=live}}</ref> the annual Kona Coffee Festival, and the Hawaiian International Billfish Tournament.

[[Kona coffee]] is the variety of ''[[Coffea arabica]]'' cultivated on the slopes of [[Hualālai]] and [[Mauna Loa]] in the North and South [[Kona District]]s. The Kona Historical Society manages two coffee related historical sites: the Kona Coffee Living History Farm and the H.N. Greenwell Store Museum just south of Kailua-Kona.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://konahistorical.org/|title=Kona Historical Society-Preserving Kona's Stories|website=Kona Historical Society|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190420030255/https://konahistorical.org/|archive-date=April 20, 2019|access-date=April 19, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>
[[Image:KailuaBay1.jpg|800px|thumb|center|{{center|Ali'i Drive along Kailua Bay}}]]
[[Ali'i Drive]], Kailua's oceanfront downtown street, starts at Kailua-Kona Pier. It has also been given the designation as a Hawaii Scenic Byway called the "Royal Footsteps Along the Kona Coast".<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.hawaiiscenicbyways.org/index.php/byway/royal-footsteps-along-the-kona-coast |title=Hawaii Scenic Byway – Royal Footsteps Along the Kona Coast<!-- Bot generated title --> |access-date=2012-04-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111025163606/http://www.hawaiiscenicbyways.org/index.php/byway/royal-footsteps-along-the-kona-coast |archive-date=2011-10-25 |url-status=live }}</ref> This byway features archaeological sites that have survived for hundreds of years.

North of the pier is the [[Kamakahonu]] royal residence and Ahu{{okina}}ena [[Heiau]], and nearby now stands the King Kamehameha's Kona Beach Hotel. Another royal residence is [[Hulihee Palace|Hulihe{{okina}}e Palace]], used by members of the Hawaiian royal family until 1914.<ref>Kona Historical Society, 1997, ''A Guide to Old Kona'', University of Hawaii Press, {{ISBN|978-0-8248-2010-7}}</ref> The Historic Kona Inn and other shops are on the street.

Churches on the drive include [[Mokuaikaua Church]], Hawai{{okina}}i's first [[Christianity|Christian]] church (the congregation began in 1820), [[St. Michael the Archangel Church (Kailua-Kona, Hawaii)|Saint Michael the Archangel Catholic Church]], and Living Stones Church, a historical structure built after Mokuaikaua and used as a Christian Missionary landing location in the 1800–1900. Parks include [[La'aloa Bay]] (also known as Magic Sands or White Sands Beach) and [[Kahaluu Bay|Kahalu{{okina}}u Bay]], a popular [[snorkeling]] location.

[[File:Old Airport Beach Morning, near Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.jpg|thumb|260px|Old Airport Beach, north of Kailua]]

Boat tours that allow tourists to watch dolphins and whales, swim with manta rays, turtles and fish in the ocean usually depart from the Kailua-Kona pier or nearby [[Honokohau Harbor|Honokohau]] and Keauhou harbors.